Electrical connector



1962 K. H. K. SHINN 3,049,582

ELECTRICAL CONNECTOR Filed Dec. 28, 1959 QJQnne-th flakishim,

MI MQVW ATTORNEYS United States Patent 6 3,049,582 ELECTRICAL CONNECTOR Kenneth H. K. Shinn, Smith Wild, Beebe & Cades, Honolulu, Hawaii Filed Dec. 28, 1959, Ser. No. 862,126 1 Claim. (Cl. 174-92) The present invention relates to electrical connectors of the mechanical type, and more particularly to a connector of the mechanical type, and more particularly to a connector for joining electric wires in line with each other.

A common method of connecting electric wires is to remove part of the insulation from the ends thereof and then individually twist the bared wire ends together. They may then be soldered or not, as desired, but in any case must be wrapped with electricians tape. This method, however, is quite tedious, cumbersome and generally unsatisfactory, giving an unsightly connection. Also, soldering, which is necessary if a strong connection is desired, is messy, requires special equipment and is often unfeasible. Another conventional way of connecting wires is by means of the type of connector which has a piercing conductor member which pierces the insulation of the wire to thereby establish electrical contact with the wire within the insulation. This type of connector, while relatively simple to use, does not give a strong connection, and very often no connection at all is made on the first attempt, subsequent attempts at connection then being necessary. In addition, this type of connector is unsatisfactory because it is impossible to see the actual connection beneath the insulation of the wire.

It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a simple, safe and efiective electrical connector wherein no special skill or special tools are required in its application.

It is another object of the present invention to provide an electrical connector which comprises a minimum number of parts, and is thus extremely economical to manufacture and use, and yet will yield a strong connection between electric wires. It is a further object to provide an electrical connector which is of minimum size and of pleasing appearance and which can be made in any color desired, for either coding purposes or simply for ornamentation, as in household use.

It is a further object of the present invention to provide an electrical connector which does not require the use of solder or electricians tape, which can be made to connect any size and gage wire, household or industrial, and in which the connection established may be observed.

These and other objects of the present invention will become apparent'frorn consideration of the following specification taken in connection with the accompanying drawings in which I have shown a single embodiment of my invention by way of example, and wherein:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of an electrical connector embodying the present invention, shown in assembled relationship as it would appear in actual use;

FIGURE 2 is a bottom plan view of the cover member of the electrical connector shown in FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 3 is a top-plan view of the base member of the electrical connector shown in FIGURE 1;

FIGURE 4 is a sectional view taken along line 44 of FIGURE 3;

FIGURE 5 is a sectional view taken along line 5-5 of FIGURE 3;

FIGURE 6 is a top-plan view of the base member, similar to FIGURE 3, but showing in addition the manner in which the wires are connected; and

FIGURE 7 is a side elevational exploded assembly view or" the electrical connector shown in FIGURE 1.

3,049,582 Patented Aug. 14, 1962 Referring more particularly to the drawings there is shown in FIGURE 1, in an assembled relationship, an electrical connector embodying the principles of my invention. The electrical connector generally comprises a lower base member 10 and an upper cover member 12 secured to the base member 10 by means of cover screw 14. Extending from each end of the connector are wires 16 and 18, respectively, which are connected together mechanically into an electrical connection by means of the electrical connector as will be more fully described hereinafter. Wires 16 and 18 as shown are of the lampcord or 2-wire type, but they may be single individual wires if desired.

Considering the specific structure of the electrical connector, there is shown in FIGURE 3 the elongated base member 10 of generally semi-elliptical cross-section having disposed therein on its upper face a longitudinal groove 20 extending the full length thereof. On each side of base member 10, there is formed by longitudinal groove 20 side walls 22 and 24, respectively, each of which extends substantially but not completely the full length of base member 10. In the bottom of longitudinal groove 20 is disposed separator wall 26 which comprises two straight end portions 28 and 30, integrally connected together by means of inclined central wall portion 32 and boss 34, as shown. Boss 34 is provided with a threaded central aperture 36 for threadably receiving the cover screw 14 for holding the cover member 12 in place, as may best be seen in FIGURE 4.

There is provided in the bottom of longitudinal groove 20, brass plates 40 and 42 which are embedded or cast in the plastic or other suitable material of which the connector is formed, as can be seen in FIGURE 5. Each of the brass plates 40 and 42 is formed with a central threaded aperture for receiving the attaching screws 44 and 46, respectively. In order that the attaching screws 44 and 46 may be threaded all the way through brass plates 40 and 42, there is provided immediately below the threaded apertures therein a hollowed-out portion in the base member 19, such as at 48 in FIGURE 5. Each of the attaching screws 44 and 46 is adapted to have wrapped therearound the electric wires which are to be connected, such connection being established by screwing the attaching screws firmly into the brass plates to clamp the wires to be connected between the brass plates and the heads of the attaching screws.

The side walls 22 and 24 of base member 10 have disposed thereon notches 50 and 52, respectively, which serve to properly locate the cover member 12 upon base member 10 when the two members are assembled.

Referring to FIGURE 2, there is shown the elongated cover member 12, also of semi-elliptical crosssection, having a longitudinally extending groove 54 and sidewalls 56 and 58. As can be seen, the cover member 12 is of the same shape and size as base member 10. The side walls 56 and 58 of cover member 12 are provided with projections 60 and 62, respectively, adapted to be received within the notches 50 and 52, respectively, of base member 10 when the two members are assembled. Additionally, there is provided in the center of cover member 12 an aperture 64 having at its upper end adjacent the outer surface of cover member 12 a countersunk portion 66, for receiving the head of cover screw 14 FIGURE 7 shows the entire connector assembly in exploded position, and clearly illustrates the manner in which the base member 10 and cover member '12 are attached and held together by cover screw 14. The engagement of the projections on the cover member into the notches inthe base member prevent relative movement between the two members when they are assembled. It will also be noted that the side walls of each of the members are substantially the same height, and that the separator wall 26 is approximately twice the height of each of the side walls. Therefore, when the two members are assembled, the separator wall will reach the full height of the central longitudinal chamber formed by the two longitudinally extending grooves. 26 and 54 when the connector is assembled, as can be seen in *FIGURE 5.

The base member 10 and cover member 12 may be made of any non-conducting material such as plastic or any other suitable material. In addition, the plates 40 and 42 need not necessarily be made of brass, but may be made of any suitable material, brass being simply the most conventional.

To use the electrical connector, it is simply necessary to remove the cover member 12 from the base member 10 and then back off attaching screws 44 and 46 so that wires may be Wrapped thereabout under the heads thereof. Considering, by way of example, the connection of two double wires as shown in FIGURE 6, it is then only necessary topeel apart the separate conductors of each of the double wires 16 and 18 a short distance, cut them to proper length, and then remove the insulation therefrom at the ends thereof. A single wire 68 of double wire 16 and a single wire 70 of double wire 18 are connected by wrapping each of the bared conductors about attaching screw 44, and then tightening the screw to thereby clamp the wires together and against brass plate 40. Similarly, a single wire 72 of double wire 16 and a single wire 74 of double wire 18 are connected by Wrapping the bared ends thereof about attaching screw 46 and then tightening the screw. FIG- URE shows in dotted lines what wires 68 and 70 will look like when they are wrapped about attaching screw 44. After the wires have been connected as described, the cover member 12 is positioned above the base member and tightly secured thereto by the cover screw 14. Of course, if it is desired to connect only two single wires it would be necessary to use only one-half of the connector.

There is thus described a simple and yet highly efiecrtive method of mechanically attaching electrical wires into a strong electrical connection. The possibility of shont circuits is reduced to a minimum by the provision of separator wall 26 which extends the full height of the chamber formed between the two members, when assembled. Furthermore, by forming the separator wall 26 with an inclined central portion 32, whereby there are created side chambers or compartments having portions of unequal size on each side of the separator wall, it is thereby possible to utilize suitable width brass plates and yet maintain a minimum width to the over-all connector. The side chambers, of which there are two, are defined by each side of separator member 26 and its respective adjacent central chamber wall, as can be visualized, each side chamber having one end of larger cross-section than the other, due to the position of inclined central portion 32. Thus the shape of the separator member 26 allows for the mounting of the brass plates closer to the center longitudinal axis of the connector, and thereby enables the connector to be extremely slender, thus taking up less room and having a more streamlined and pleasing appearance. The connector, of course, may be reused as often as desired, and may be made in any suitable color, either for coding purposes or for ornamentation.

While there has been disclosed in the above description and in the drawings an exemplary embodiment of my invention, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that the specific details of construction and arrangement of parts, as described, are by way of example only and are not to be construed as limiting the scope of the invention. I, therefore, do not wish to be limited to the precisce details set forth, and intend that the invention embody all such features and modifications as are within the scope of the appended claim.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is new and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

An electrical connector comprising an elongated base member having a pair of straight longitudinal side walls extending from opposite sides thereof, a. separate elongated cover member having a pair of straight longitudinal side walls extending from. opposite sides thereof, said members being movable together into an operative position with the side walls of each member in abutting aligned cooperating relation to the side walls of the other member, each cooperating pair of abutting side Walls including longitudinally spaced pairs of intercugaging projections and notches extending from and formed in the inner portions thereof res ectively, said base member having a boss extending from the central portion thereof between the associated side walls, said boss having an interiorly threaded opening formed therein, a single fastening element extending through said cover member for engagement within said threaded opening to secure said members in said operative position with the side Walls in abutting relation and with said projections disposed within said notches to prevent relative turning movement between the members about the axis of said fastening element, said members together in said operative position forming a substantially rectangular longitudinally extending chamber defined on the sides thereof by said cooperating pairs of side walls and having the ends thereof open for the reception therethrough of end portions of a pair of dual lead insulated electric cords to be connected together, said base member having first and second straight longitudinal seprarator walls of a height substantially equal to twice the height of the associated side walls formed therein [in parallel relation between the side walls thereof, said first separator wall being disposed between said boss and one end of said chamber on one side of the center longitudinal axis of said chamber and said second separator Wall being similarly disposed between said boss and the other end of said chamber on the other side of said center axis dividing said chamber into two equal side chamber compartments, each of said compartments including a first portion of a width sufficient to closely receive one lead of the associated cord and a second portion of a width to receive the uninsulated end of said lead in lapped relation to an uninsulated end of one lead of the other cord, and a single attaching screw disposed within the second portion of each compartment and threadedly engaged with said base member for securing the uninsulated lapped ends of the associated leads in electrical contact with each other.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 964,969 Hesterhagen July 19, 1910 1,324,994 Benjamin Dec. 16, 1919 2,267,630 Weiland Dec. 23, 1941 2,475,184 Hudson July 5, 1949 2,810,115 Abbott Oct. 15, I957 

